PRIMARY ELECTION RESULT: Winner - Vincent Ignizio (Rep)

PRIMARY ELECTION CANDIDATES

CANDIDATE BIOGRAPHIES

Mario Bruno, Jr. is the assistant commissioner for after-school programs at the city's Department of Youth and Community Development.

Vincent Igniziois currently the Chief of Staff for Councilman Andrew J. Lanza and the second vice-chairman of the Republican Party on State Island. He was also chief of staff for former City Councilmember Stephen Fiala.

Emanuele Innamorato (no information available)

Robert Straniere has served in the New York State Assemby since 1981. He is the Assistant Minority Leader of the assembly’s Republican Conference.

CAMPAIGN TRAIL

09/30/04 Twenty-three year incumbent Robert Straniere lost the Republican nomination to Vincent Ignizio. Despite Straniere's attack against the proposal by the International Speedway Corp to build a NASCAR race track on a 680-acre industrial site on the West Shore in Bloomfield, Ignizio seized the bid. The proposal did not seem to influence voters since it is unlikely that Straniere, a minority in the Democratic-run state Assembly, would have been able to challenge the proposal. Ignizio also opposes the track. ( Staten Island Advance)

09/29/04 If Vincent Ignizio wins the State Senate seat in the 62nd District, he will be, at 30, the youngest lawmaker in the State Legislature. Ignizio is running on the Republican ticket in a traditionally Republican assembly district, the South Shore. Being the youngest, Ignizio says, would allow him to serve as a "role model" for his generation and bring a fresh perspective to a Legislature usually entrenched with incumbents. ( Staten Island Advance)

09/26/04 Vincent Ignizio upset twenty-three year incumbent Robert Straniere on September 14 for the state Senate Seat in South Shore, Staten Island. The surprise victory also brought to light mounting tensions within the Republican party in a bastion of Republicans and voter dissatisfaction with a stagnant status quo. Straniere was opposed by Ignizio and Mario Bruno, who is continuing on the Conservative ticket. Ignizio is expected to beat the Democratic candidate Emanuele Innamorato (New York Times)

09/03/04 Opposition to the proposed NASCAR racetrack and the preservation of Camp St. Edward were the main courses yesterday at a community breakfast sponsored by Assemblyman Robert Straniere. Following a discussion of the just-ended legislative session's successes and failures, Straniere (R-South Shore) once again denounced plans for construction of a 80,000-seat track on the former GATX site in Bloomfield. ( Staten Island Advance)

08/5/04 Assemblymember Robert Straniere was one of 26 Assembly Republican incumbents who will not be endorsed by the New York State United Teachers Union. All 26 assemblymen were endorsed in the 2002 race. (The Associated Press State and Local Wire)

07/25/04 For a time, not very many years ago, Staten Island Republicans seemed to operate as one big happy family. But the party that was lorded over by Guy V. Molinari is split by a bitter feud. And that feud is playing out in an Assembly race in the central and southern portions of the borough, the 62nd Assembly District, an area that is the Republican bedrock of New York City. There, the incumbent assemblyman, Robert A. Straniere, who is also the assistant minority leader, is facing two challengers, each of them backed by a different and prominent Republican leader. One of Mr. Straniere's challengers is backed by Mr. Molinari, a former Staten Island borough president and longtime paterfamilias of the island's Republican Party. United States Representative Vito J. Fossella, one of the borough's best-known politicians, supports the other. The race has caused the fissures within the party to become more pronounced than ever. More than anything, the race has been portrayed as a contest between Mr. Molinari and Mr. Fossella to determine who has the superior political muscle. For the most part, the candidates suggest that the race is more about who is best qualified to deal with the issues that they say trouble Staten Islanders the most: the fast-paced development of the borough, the need for more mass transit between Staten Island and Manhattan and the need for additional classroom space. (New York Times)

07/18/04 Straniere, who is being challenged this September by Bruno and Ignizio, cites the building of a NASCAR speedway as being a “scheme park.” Borough President James P. Molinaro has taken a “wait-and-see” approach. Many Staten Island residents like the idea of a racetrack. (The New York Times)

04/22/04 Robert Straniere, who has lost favor with the Republican Party after an unsuccessful attempt running for borough president, will face two challengers in this year’s fall election: Ignizio and Bruno. If the party remains divided, then a faction could throw in support of Councilman Thomas Ognibene of Queens, who is planning to challenge Mayor Bloomberg in a Republican primary. (The New York Sun)

04/20/04 An $85,000-a-year administrator of city after-school programs has been granted a leave of absence to run for state office - after departing his duties at least twice since 2001 to work in Republican campaigns. Mario Bruno, 39, an assistant commissioner for youth services, was tapped Thursday by Conservative Party leaders to run for a Staten Island Assembly seat. Bruno owes his revolving-door public post - which has survived city deficits, downsizing, attrition and layoffs - to his role as a political operative for Republicans, City Hall insiders acknowledge. (Newsday)

04/04/04 Mario Bruno was granted a waiver by Mayor Bloomberg to stay on the city payroll while he runs for a seat on the state assembly. He has taken off an average of eight weeks a year, and left the payroll in order to manage the campaign of Borough President James P. Molinaro. (The New York Post)

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